Topic: smart-government


7 MIN. READ

Smart City Evolution: A Review of Becoming a Smart City

By Bart Gorynski on Dec 12, 2022 10:02:00 AM

Over the past years, the smart city concept has reached a state of mainstream acknowledgment throughout the world. However, several important aspects are subject to constant debate:

  • What is the best or a suitable smart city definition?
  • Does the smart city concept apply to cities only, or does it include rural or smaller communities?
  • Is the smart city concept technology- or human-centric?
  • What are the key success factors of leading smart cities?
  • What are the strategic governance approaches?
  • What can be derived from best practices in smart cities development?

In our review on becoming a smart city, we will cover all of these topics that relate to the smart city evolution and defining the term smart city from a practical perspective.

Topics:

Smart City Strategy Smart Government Smart City Technology Urban Transformation Smart City Smart People

12 MIN. READ

How Smart Cities Are Boosting Citizen Engagement

By Joe Appleton on Oct 19, 2020 10:00:00 AM

According to statistics from the United Nations Population Fund, over half of the planet’s population lives in cities. By the year 2030, it’s expected that around 5 billion people will live in urban hubs. As cities grow larger and have a greater impact on the environment, local governments will have to adapt to ensure that the needs of their citizens are being met.

Civic engagement is a key part of a city’s evolution. Input from citizens can help define the dynamic of a city. Unfortunately, citizen participation rates are lower than ever. In the past, cities could use town hall meetings and surveys to connect with their residents, but due to a number of reasons, modern governments aren’t connecting with their citizens like they used to. This can have numerous negative effects on a city, from an alienated population to the implementation of unpopular policies.

Because of this, it’s necessary for city governments to embrace new methods of inspiring citizen engagement.

Topics:

Smart Government Smart City Smart People Citizen Engagement

11 MIN. READ

Leading North American Smart Cities to Watch in 2019

By Lily Maxwell on Sep 25, 2019 10:55:27 AM

In a 2018 report completed by the Eden Strategy Institute, 12 of the globe’s 20 smartest cities were located in the USA. Founded upon a spirit of innovation, it is perhaps no surprise that many of the country’s smart cities are so high-ranking, providing inspiration to other cities all over the world. Following our exploration of 4 up-and-coming North American Smart Cities in Part 1, we’ve chosen to take a brief look at 4 of the most prominent smart cities in the country in Part 2. From 2018’s highest ranking smart city worldwide, New York, to its start-up hub, San Francisco, we’ll take you through some of the smartest initiatives the US has to offer.

Topics:

Smart Government Smart Mobility Open Data Internet of Things (IoT) Citizen Engagement Blockchain Smart Infrastructure

9 MIN. READ

Rising Stars: Eight Smart Cities in Asia to Watch in 2019 - Part 2

By Lily Maxwell on Jul 16, 2019 9:10:55 PM

As we saw in our last article on Asian smart city stars, urban centers in Asia are facing mass urbanization on a much more significant scale than many other parts of the world. They are also often located in climate-vulnerable regions. For example, a World Bank research report assessing the possible consequences of continued sea-level rise on eighty-four developing countries found that the impact of sea-level rise will be particularly severe for the Asia-Pacific region. For this reason, becoming ‘smarter’ and more sustainable is a top priority for many of Asia’s cities. In this article, we will look at four more Asian metropolises that are pushing forward smart initiatives in order to tackle current and prepare for future challenges. If you have not read the first part of the Rising Asian Stars article, you can read it here Rising Asian Stars: Smart Cities to Watch in 2019 - Part 1.

Topics:

Smart City Solutions Smart Government Smart Mobility Smart Lighting Smart City Innovation Smart Education Smart City Projects

12 MIN. READ

Bob Bennett: the Role of Smart Cities Technology and their Benefits

By Lily Maxwell on Jul 10, 2019 10:46:02 AM

Bob Bennett, the former Chief Innovation Officer (CIO) of Kansas City talked in our Smart City Leader Interview Series - while he still was the CIO of Kansas City - about the importance of smart cities and smart citizens. He emphasized the role of technology and the benefits for citizens.

Topics:

Smart Government Smart Environment Smart City Smart City Innovation Smart People Blockchain Future Cities Smart Infrastructure Urban Data Platform Smart City Projects

11 MIN. READ

Rising Asian Stars: Smart Cities in Asia to Watch in 2019 - Part 1

By Lily Maxwell on Jun 19, 2019 2:02:08 PM

There were an estimated 47 megacities in existence in 2017, and the majority were located in Asia. The region is facing urbanization on a scale far beyond that of other regions, with an estimated 1.1 billion moving into Asian cities in the next 20 years. Many Asian countries are also in areas that are prone to extreme weather patterns or natural disasters, and this is only becoming more of a problem with climate change. Cities across the continent urgently need to prepare for serious population growth, and the strain it will place on their public services, and the risks that environmental changes pose. For this reason, becoming more resilient and ‘smarter’ is inevitably at the top of most Asian cities’ political agendas. In this article we are going to explore some of the Asian cities investing in becoming smarter and more sustainable in order to make their citizens safer and happier.

Topics:

Smart City Strategy Smart City Solutions Smart Living Smart Government Smart Mobility Smart City Internet of Things (IoT) Climate Change Smart City Projects

10 MIN. READ

Smart Cities and the Promise of Innovation in Public Services

By Jon Glasco on Apr 10, 2019 10:47:47 PM

There was a time when bells in town squares warned citizens of impending danger. Today, the bells ring again in the form of studies and media reports with warnings about urban problems that plague modern cities and resist solutions. Meanwhile, increasing numbers of people move to cities in pursuit of a higher quality of life. This is the story of cities: Citizens with big expectations versus the endurance of big city problems. It is a still-unfolding story with numerous villains: social inequality, traffic congestion, pollution, crime, unemployment, lack of affordable housing, aging infrastructure, public service shortfalls.

Topics:

Smart City Strategy Smart City Solutions Smart Government Smart City Urban Innovation Future Cities Digital Transformation Digital City Smarte Verwaltung Smart City Projects

5 MIN. READ

Estonia: Smart Nation on the Baltic Sea

By Mike Barlow and Cornelia Levy-Bencheton on Feb 13, 2019 3:07:32 PM

What does it take to turn a national bureaucracy into a smart government? It’s not too often a country is given a clean slate from which to start. But for Estonia, a small nation on the Baltic Sea, that is exactly what happened.

A combination of pragmatism and instinct led Estonia to develop an e-government in the 1990s, soon after the country regained its independence from the Soviet Union. The Estonians didn’t pursue a digital future because they thought it would be cool or trendy. They followed their common sense, which told them it would be better to expend their limited resources on servers and networks, rather than on grand buildings and government palaces.

Topics:

Smart Government Blockchain

17 MIN. READ

Jonathan Reichental on the Importance of Smart Cities & Smart Citizens

By Lily Maxwell on Oct 10, 2018 12:00:29 PM

The importance of smart cities & smart citizens: In our new interview series, smart city leaders comment on the future of smart cities, the role of technology, and the benefits for citizens. In our first interview of the series, we have asked Jonathan Reichental, CIO of Palo Alto, California to share his expertise, thoughts and insights with us on a number of important smart city topics.

Topics:

Smart City Strategy Smart City Solutions Smart Government Smart Environment Smart Mobility Smart City Technology Smart City Smart City Innovation Smart People Smart Cities Future Cities Procurement

9 MIN. READ

Blockchain Technologies: The Next Frontier of Smart Cities - Part 2

By Lily Maxwell on Aug 20, 2018 10:06:01 AM

As we discussed in our previous article (Blockchain: The Next Frontier of Smart Cities - Part 1), blockchain has the potential to transform our communities, making the places we call home more collaborative, democratic and sustainable places. It is no surprise then, that a whole bunch of cities - from Santiago de Chile, Toronto, Tel Aviv, Oslo, and Milan, to London, and Stockholm - are already developing blockchain-based projects. Dubai is going even further, aiming to become the world’s first fully ‘blockchain-powered city’ by 2020. Lofty ideals aside, as we examined in part 1, blockchain does actually seem to offer some concrete benefits for communities, as we shall see below.

Topics:

Smart City Solutions Smart Government Smart City Internet of Things (IoT) Smart People Smart Cities Blockchain

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